Fighting for Love by L.P. Dover Read Free Book Online Page A

down my cheek. If I had known he came after me, would things be different now?
    “You came after me?” I asked, whispering the words.
    He lifted his head and nodded, his gorgeous green eyes no longer staring back at me with anger, but with sorrow and regret. “I was so angry at you, Shelby. I thought maybe there was a reason you did what you did, but then I saw you with that guy and all I could focus on was the feeling of being betrayed. After that I decided to care only about myself and my family, and that’s when I started fighting.”
    Reaching for my hand, he pulled me to his side; our arms brushed together as I leaned back against the desk beside him. It felt so good to be close to him, it felt like … home. With his voice just above a whisper, he remarked softly, “All I wanted was to hate you, but now that you’re right here in front of me I just hate myself because I still can’t. No matter how hard I tried, I could never get you out of my mind.”
    He turned his body toward me and I did the same to him, my stomach fluttering. I wanted him to touch me and I counted down the seconds as he brought his hands up slowly to each side of my face. The instant he touched me, my skin tingled and I sighed in longing, rubbing my cheeks against the feel of his hands.
    “Matt,” I whispered breathlessly, “I’ve missed you so much.”
    “Then tell me the truth, Shelby,” he breathed, his voice a low growl. “Did you really stop loving me?”
    Relishing in the feel of his hands on my skin, I wasn’t sure how long I stood there staring into his eyes, which mirrored the same heat and longing I knew was in my own. There was a pull, drawing me to him as if gravity had a mind of its own, and it kept pushing us closer together. When our lips touched, that one single spark was all it took to unlock every single emotion—every single desire—I had hidden in the depths of my soul. Lifting my hands to his face, I held him to me as he opened my lips with his tongue, pushing his way inside, possessing me.
    I wanted him again, but then I knew I shouldn’t. I had to remember that so many other women had tasted his lips and felt his body between their legs while my heart ached. Although, it wasn’t a full day ago that I was in the arms of another man; kissing him, and vowing to myself that I was going to try and get over my past. Those thoughts were enough of a distraction to cool the ache inside of me that burned for his touch. Sighing, I moved away from the desk to put distance between us. If I didn’t I would completely lose any sense of reality around him, especially with the way he looked at me with such raw and untamed passion.
    “The answer to your question is no,” I claimed breathlessly before steeling myself. “I never stopped loving you, Matt.”
    He pushed off the desk and started to speak, but I held up my hand to get him to stop. I had to get everything out … well, almost everything.
    “I know you’re not going to understand why I did what I did, but you have to trust me when I say it was for the best. You needed to venture out and make something of yourself. You wouldn’t be where you are today if I would’ve stayed.”
    Matt’s mouth dropped and he scoffed in disbelief, stalking toward me to close the distance I just put between us.
    “What? You’re not making any fucking sense,” he snapped while angrily running his hands through his dark hair. “So you left because you thought it would make me better? That’s horse shit and you know it. You have no idea what things would’ve been like if you stayed. I could’ve been better for all you know, and most importantly, it wasn’t your choice to decide what was best for me.”
    With his jaw clenched, he turned away from me to look out the window. What have I done? After all this time the pain was as raw as an open sore that wouldn’t heal. It kept reopening, and each time the pain would go deeper. Slowly, I edged toward him, my heart breaking with